Miesha Tate On Rousey: “She’s Made It Personal For Me”

Ronda Rousey has made it no secret that she’s drawn inspiration from several of her male counterparts in marketing herself. Following in the footsteps of West Linn’s most dangerous man, Chael Sonnen, Rousey talked her way into a title shot — the four-straight first round armbar wins didn’t hurt her case — against Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champ Miesha Tate.

Though only a year into the sport as a pro, Rousey’s history as an Olympic Bronze medalist in judo and impressive start in the game have her cast as the favorite heading into this weekend’s championship bout with Tate. The entire MMA world seems enamored with Rousey and convinced of her skill, with the strong exception of Miesha Tate.

“Not only am I not a fan, I cannot stand the girl,” Tate recently told MMAWeekly of Rousey. “She is full of it. I think she runs her mouth way too much. She says things that just make her look absolutely ridiculous and I think she gives women’s MMA a bad name. I don’t think she’s good representation or a good role model for the sport, period. Not only do I not like her, but I don’t respect her at all.”

The difference between Sonnen upping his stock via trash talk and what Rousey has done is distinct in Tate’s eyes. Tate sees Rousey as a cocky upstart who’s yet to be taught a lesson, but very much needs one. She also sees herself as the one to dole it out.

“She’s made it personal for me. She says it’s not personal, but it is. The difference between her and Chael is that Chael’s been around for a long time, and I think people understand that it’s more of a gimmick. He’s a funny guy and he says things that are funny. The difference with Ronda is that she’s rude. She’s not necessarily comical in everything that she says; she’s kind of a bitch to be honest,” said the champion. “She says things like ‘Well, it took me six months to do what it took Miesha Tate six years to do’ and that kind of stuff pisses me off because she’s making it look like she’s all high and mighty and she’s so much better than all of us. She doesn’t understand, and she can’t begin to fathom, where women’s MMA was six years ago. It wasn’t here; I’ll tell you that much.

“I don’t think for a long time to come that there will be a more satisfying win.”

Tate and Rousey will get the chance to settle their differences in the cage this Saturday, when they meet in the main event of Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey.